Olympic Quarterfinals Primer

Olympic Quarterfinals PrimerThe Ducks have six players still playing for their national teams as the Olympic hockey medal round gets underway in Sochi, Russia on Wednesday. Each of the four quarterfinal games will feature Ducks Olympians (all times PT): \r\n

The Ducks have six players still playing for their national teams as the Olympic hockey medal round gets underway in Sochi, Russia on Wednesday. Each of the four quarterfinal games will feature Ducks Olympians (all times PT):

SLOVENIA VS. SWEDEN
Slovenia will be looking to add to its improbable run at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, its first appearance in an Olympic hockey tournament. Sweden, meanwhile, will be looking to do what's expected of it and that is advance to the semifinals on the way to a third appearance on the medal podium in the six Olympics that have included NHL players. READ MORE

RUSSIA VS. FINLAND
Each country is still three wins away from bringing home gold at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, but first things first: Russia and Finland meet Wednesday in a showdown of international superpowers, with one moving into the semifinals on Friday while the other goes home without the opportunity to play for a medal. READ MORE

LATVIA VS. CANADA
In the grand scheme of things, it's the same: This game is for the right to compete for a medal in the 2014 Sochi Olympics. In reality, it means something completely different to each of the two competing nations. Canada was expected to be here and is expected to go on and defend the gold medal it won four years ago in Vancouver. Anything less will be seen as a huge disappointment. READ MORE

CZECH REPUBLIC VS. UNITED STATES
A trip to the semifinals and a chance to play for a medal. The United States, which finished second in the preliminary round with two regulation wins and a shootout victory, would like to continue its quest to go one step further than it did four years ago in Vancouver, when it lost to Canada in overtime in the gold-medal game. The Czech Republic will try to continue its strong results in Olympics played outside of North America; they won gold in 1998 in Japan and bronze in 2006 in Italy. READ MORE